Apparatus for the deposition of liquid materials



E. S. L. BEALE Feb. 20, 1962 APPARATUS FOR THE DEPOSITION OF LIQUIDMATERIALS Filed May 5, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATT Y Feb. 20, 1962 E. s.L. BEALE 3,

APPARATUS FOR THE DEPOSITION OF LIQUID MATERIALS Filed May 5, 1958 3Sheets-Sheet 2 /N VE N T R ATTORNEY Feb. 20, 1962 E. s. BEALE 3,021,816

APPARATUS FOR THE DEPOSITION OF LIQUID MATERIALS Filed May 5, 1958 3Sheets-Sheet 3 EgQ.

31 33 lNl/ENTOR ATTORNEY United States 3,021,816 Patented Feb. 20, 1962free fined areas on surfaces, the apparatus being of the kind in whichthe surface to receive the deposit is brought into contact with theoperative face of a matrix having a number of shallow cavities in thatface for the reception of materials to be deposited introduced throughconduits leading through the matrix to the cavities so that depositiontakes place on the surface in patches or areas defined by the boundariesof the cavities in the matrix.

The materials to be deposited are such as will remain in the accuratelydefined areas in which they have been deposited when the surface andmatrix are separated.

The deposition is most commonly effected on paper or card sheets, thesheets being placed upon a flat platen which can be raised and loweredby suitable power operated means to engage the sheet with and disengagethe sheet from the matrix.

It is highly desirable that the movements of the platen shall take placewith a minimum of departure of the surface of the platen from theposition of parallelism with the operative surface of the matrix inorder for example to avoid indentation of the paper or card on theplaten by edges or corners of or on the matrix.

On the other hand it is also desirable that the platen be able toaccommodate itself to the surface of the matrix when the surfaces of thematrix and platen are not in perfect parallelism, as well as toaccommodate the surface of a sheet or card of non-uniform thickness onthe platen to the surface of the matrix in order to achieve uniform loaddistribution between the surfaces to receive the deposit and the wholeof the face of the matrix and efiec tive sealing of the cavities in thematrix by the sheet or card, against escape of liquid usually introducedinto the cavities under pressure.

In accordance with the invention an apparatus of the kind indicaed aboveis provided having a rising and falling platen, power operated means forapplying lift at the approximate centre of the underside of the platen,a pair of guides fixed in spaced relationship on the platen in or nearthe general plane thereof and movable on a pair of spaced and fixedvertical guide posts, and at least one arm rigidly connected at one endto the underside of the platen at a point spaced from a line passingthrough the axes of said pair of guides and extending at a downwardinclination and carrying at the other end a further guide also movableon a fixed vertical guide post, said arm or arms being of a stiffnesssuch as to maintain the platen parallel to itself during its free risingmovement but such as to yield to permit the platen to accommodate itselfto slight departure from parallelism between the face of the matrix andthe surface carried on the platen intended to receive the deposit, assaid surface makes pressure engagement with the face of the matrix.

The arm or arms of moderate stiffness is or are preferably attached tothe platen at or in the region of the center of the underside thereof sothat any bending moment applied to the point of attachment shall cause aminimum amount of distortion of the table.

One or other or both of the first mentioned pair of spaced and fixedvertical guide posts may also serve as the vertical guidepost or postsfor the guide or guides on the other end of the arm or arms oralternatively one or more separate guide posts may be provided for theguide or guides on the lower end or ends of the arm or arms.

- The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanyingdrawings inwhich I FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a completemachine-embodying the invention.

' FIGS. 2 and 3 are views in-underside plan and elevation respectivelyofa matrix'as used on a machine as shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 being taken onthe line IlI-III of FIG. 2. v f

FIG. 4 is a view in end elevation of the parts of the machine relevantto the present invention taken on the line IV-IV of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a guide means therefor.

FIG. 6 is a view in elevation showing a part of the platen and one ofthe guides therefor looking from below in FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the arm of moderate stiffness separated fromthe machine.

FIG. 8 is a view in side elevation of the arm of FIG. 7 and FIG. 9 is aview in section of the main taken on the line IX--IX of FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 1 the machine shown is in general of the kind fullydescribed in the specification of co-pending application Ser. No.690,825 and comprises a hollow base 1 on which is mounted a rectangularbase frame 2 supporting four rigid vertical corner posts 3 of circularsection and an open top frame 4 fixedly connected with the upper ends ofthe posts 3.

To the underside of the top frame 4 is fixedly connected a matrix 5 ofknown kind as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 consisting of a metal block havinghollow shallow cavities 6 formed in its operative under face, thecavities being bounded by ridges 7 of small height of the order of a fewthousandths of an inch, extending from the surface of the matrix.

Holes 8 are provided in the matrix leading from the upper side thereofto the interiors of the cavities 6 and the upper ends of the holes arethreaded for the connection of tubes 9.

A support 10 carried fixedly by a pair of arms 11 extending upwards fromthe top frame 4 support a plurality of plunger pumps 12 for the liquidto be deposited. The inlet of each pump is connected through a flexibletube 13 with one of a number of reservoirs 14 for paint or other liquidto be deposited carried in a convenient location above the apparatus,and the delivery end of each pump is connected with one end of one ofthe tubes 9 leading to the holes 8 through the matrix. The tubes 9 areof metal or other substantially inextensible material.

On the rectangular base frame 2 and in the space within the four posts 3of the frame structure and below the matrix 5 is located a verticallydisposed hydraulic press 15, the cylinder 16 of which is supported onthe base frame 2;. The vertical ram 17 of the press 15 carries a platen18 the upper surface of which is disposed parallel with the operativeface of the matrix 5, both usually being horizontal as shown, the p1aten18 being raised and part of the platen and the part of the arm loweredby the ram 1 7.

Sheets of paper, card or the like upon which deposits are to be made areplaced singly in succession on the surface of the platen 18 in thelowered position of the latter and the platen raised by the hydraulicpress 15 to urge the sheet into pressure engagement with the undersideof the matrix in such a manner as to seal oil the cavities 1'5, andthereafter the pumps 12 are operated to feed the liquid under pressurefrom the reservoirs 14, through the matrix 5 to the cavities 6 in orderto deposit it on the sheet in areas defined by the ridges 7. The platen5 after cessation of feed by the pumps is lowered to enable the sheetwith the deposit thereon to be removed and a next succeeding sheetsubstituted on the platen.

It is important that the surface of the platen 18 shall remain, withinclose lirnits, parallel to the operative surface of the matrix 5 inorder to avoid undesirable indentation and possible penetration of asheet by premature engagement of some part of vthe matrix such as anedge or corher of oiie or more of the veavity bounding ridges 7, andalso to ensure that an eifective seal shall be achieved betweenuiefshest on the platen 18 and the boundary ridges 7 of the cavities ofthe matrix and that smudging of deposit material at the boundaries ofthe cavities when the sheet and the matrix are parted shall be avoided.

on the other hand non-uniformity of thickness as between edges of sheetsof paper or card is frequently encountered and furthermore absolute andconstant accuracy in parallelism between a moving platen and a matrix isin practice very diflicult to achieve and it is desirable therefore thatthe platen shall be able to accommodate itself and the sheet carriedthereby to the surface of the matrix to achieve uniform loaddistribution between the surface of the sheet and the operative face ofthe matrix despite small departures from parallelism by the platen orvarialiOflS in thickness of the sheet.

With a view to meeting this requirement there is employed in the caseillustrated, a platen 18 of rectangular form in plan and the ram 17 ofthe hydraulic press 15 is engaged with the centre of the underside ofthe platen.

The platen 18 is provided at each end of one of its edges, the righthand edge in FIG. 1, with a guide 19, these two guides 19 being arrangedin or close to the plane of the platen and to slide up and down on twoof the vertical posts 3. V V

The selected guide posts 3 are precision ground and chromium plated andthe guides are shown as each comprising two half bearings 20, 21 inflat. plates 22, 23, the flat plates having clearance holes 24 for thepassage of fixing bolts 25 taking into brackets 26 bolted to the twocorners of the platen so that the half bearings 20, 21 can be adjustedaccurately in position for free sliding without play on the posts 3. I

An arm of moderate stifiness, that is, one which is normally rigid buthas some degree of inherent resiliency may be formed by a length ofchannel section metal 27 as shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 welded at one endto a bracket 28 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 to which is welded asemicircular yoke 29 of a size to embrace the upper end of the ram 17 ofthe hydraulic press 15.

The other end of the arm 27 is welded to a bracket 30 including aslotted flat plate 31 to which is bolted the two halves 32, 33, of abearing similar to the above described bearings 20, 21, 22 and 23 on theplaten 18.

The yoke 29 and the plate 31 of the bracket 30 lie in parallel planesinclined at an angle e.g. of 45 to the longitudinal direction of the arm27.

The yoke 29 is bolted to the underside of the platen in a positionsubstantially concentric with the ram 17 of the hydraulic press, withthe arm 27 extending downwards at an inclination to the vertical, thebearings 32, 33 in the bracket 30 being engaged and adjusted about oneof the two vertical posts 3 engaged by the guide bearings 20, 21 on theplaten itself, so as to be slidable without play thfifeoflv.

In setting up the machine, the matrix 5 is mounted beneath the top frame4 so that the operative underside of the matrix is parallel or as nearas possible parallel with the surface of the platen 18.

The stiffness of the arm 27 is selected so that during rising andfalling movements of the platen 18 whilst not engaged with the matrix 5,the platen makes guided movements parallel to itself without anyredundant restraint, by virtue of sliding movement of the two bearings,formed by the two sets of parts 20, 21, constituting the guides 19 onthe platen itself, on the two posts 3, and the third guide formed by thebearing comprising the two parts 32, 33 on the lower end of the inclinedarm 27 on one of the guide posts 3, but also so that in the event ofsome slight lack of parallelism between the face of a sheet on theplaten 18 and the operatiyeface of the matrix 5 as the sheet makespressure contact with the matrix the platen is permitted to accommodateitself to compensate .for such lack of parallelism by bending yield. ofthe arm 27. The ar m 27 being connected hrough the yoke 29 with theapproximate centre of the underside of the platen, any bending momentapplied at the point of attachment as the arms yields, will involve onlya minimum and negligible amount of distortion oi the pl-aten18. i, yoke29 at the upper end of the arm 27 is preferably connected with theplaten 18 by means of necked studs (not shown) designed to break oil ifany large foreign body is accidentally left between the platen 18 andthe matrix 5.

I a m:

1. Apparatus for depositing thin layers of liquid in ac]- curatelydefinedareas on surfaces comprising a matrix having a plurality ofshallow cavities in one face, support means supporting said matrix infixed position with the cavity-containing face lowermost, means forcontrollably feeding liquids to be deposited onto the surfaces throughthe body of the matrix to the cavities, at least two fixed and par allelvertical guide posts, a vertically movable platen, power-operated meansapplying lift at the approximate centre of the underside of said platen,spaced guides fixed to said platen in the region of the general plane ofthe platen and each slidably engageable with a close guiding fit withone of said vertical guide posts, at least one arm connected at one ofits ends to the underside of the said platen at a point spaced flom avertical plane containing two of the spaced guides, said arm extendingdownwards from the said platen at an inclination to the vertical, and afurther guide carried at the lower end of said arm and slidablyengageable with a close guiding fit with one of said vertical guideposts as the platen is raised and lowered, said arm being normally rigidbut having a sulficient degree of inherent resiliency to permit saidplaten to assume parallelism with the matrix when in contact therewith,under the force of the power-operated means.

2. Apparatus for depositing thin layers of liquid in accurately definedareas on surfaces comprising a matrix having a plurality of shallowcavities in one face, means for controllably feeding liquids to bedeposited onto the surfaces through the body of the matrix to thecavities, support means supporting said matrix in fixed position withthe cavity-containing face lowermost, at least two fixed and parallelvertical guide posts, a vertically movable platen, said guide postsbeing in a common vertical plane spaced from the center of said platen,power-operated means including a ram connected with the centre of theunderside of the platen and applying lift to the platen, a pair ofspaced guides fixed to said platen in the region of the general plane ofthe platen and each slidably engageable with a close guiding fit' withone of said vertical guide posts, an arm, a yoke rigid with one end ofsaid arm and in a plane inclined to said arm and fixed to the undersideof the platen with the yoke embracing the ram and the said arm extendingdownwards at an inclination wis vertical, n a v t er i ds wr a h le eend of said arm and slidably engageable with a close guiding fit withone of said vertical guide posts as the platen is raised and lowered,said arm being normally rigid but having a sufiicient degree of inherentresiliency to permit said platen to assume parallelism with the matrixwhen in contact therewith, under the force of the power-oper- 5 atedmeans.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,591,941 Innerfield Apr. 8, 1952 2,779,059 Kruft Jan. 29, 19572,794,415 Hillman June 4, 1957

